Tuesday, July 3, 2012

Konad Kit from Nail Polish Canada!

Hey everyone! And happy belated Canada Day to all my Canadians out there!
Today I've got a Canadian-appropriate post, with a product review from Nail Polish Canada!

Did you know that Nail Polish Canada carries Konad? They've got plates, polishes, and stamping sets galore.
I'm always wanting to order new Konad plates and supplies because they are simply the best. They just work best! And I'm not just saying this because I'm doing a product review - I truly believe that if you want to start stamping, you should start with Konad. Konad is the easiest to use and gives the best results.
If you're trying to learn a new skill, why not start with the best supplies?

I started my stamping with generic plates, a generic stamper, and regular polishes. It was hard to get good results.
When I started using Konad supplies I was like, "Crap! Why did I waste my time with crap?!"

In this set you get a stamper, scraper, one plate (m36) and a small bottle of their white stamping polish.
This is all you need to get started!

The back of the package has the instructions on how to use it which are helpful if it is your first time!

I did two different manis to showcase the images on this cute plate.

First I did a mani with all of the images, over my Orly Here Comes Trouble mani.
(I searched far and wide for this polish... But look! It's now available here on Nail Polish Canada.)

I stamped all the images around my nails randomly using the white stamping polish included in the set. All of the images transferred without issue, because that's the way Konad works! Haha!
On my thumb I added blue butterflies as an accent! (Tip! You can tint your white stamping polish into any color you want by adding a little regular polish and the white to some paper and mixing them before painting the mixed polish onto the plate!)

This mani was pretty cool, but I needed something cuter for the second mani.
And I really succeeded, if I may say so myself!

Tada! Butterfly mani! This is probably the most girly/dainty mani I have ever worn but I quite like it.

The base color here is China Glaze Dance Baby, one of my all time favorite pinks, which happens to be available here on Nail Polish Canada!
The first layer of stamping was done with OPI Dim Sum Plum, another pink I love which is very opaque and good for stamping. Also available on NPC! (I swear I did not use these polishes so I could add more links to the post - Nail Polish Canada just happens to carry basically everything I like. And for this reason, I like them!!)

I used the pretty flower images 2 or 3 times on each nail to create a full flower pattern.
Then I added the butterflies randomly with Konad Special White (which too, can be bought alone on NPC.)

I love tone-on-tone stamping, and adding the white butterflies really set it off!
I took some pictures before adding the butterflies too, in case it didn't look nice.

I liked it like this, too! But the more stamps the merrier, I think. Layering stamps brings stamping to a whole new level.

I have one more picture for you guys, that will showcase one of the ways the Konad stamper really is your best bet.

On this nail I stamped the same image on the left and right (but in different directions.)
The left was done with the Konad stamper, the right with a generic one from eBay.
Can you see how the image from the Konad stamper is darker? It just works better. In like 10 ways.

Long story short, Konad plates are the best because they're always engraved right. The Konad stampers are the best because they just do the job. The Konad scraper I am not going to preach about because I like my generic scrapers just fine, too (but you're better off getting something plastic instead of metal.) While lots of polishes are usable for stamping, Konad polishes are the best because they are made for it.

This is not to say you shouldn't use any generic things or other stamping brands! I think you definitely should! But you should start your obsession with Konad because it will make your life easier and prepare you for the difficulties you may face using lesser quality products.
Even if you don't wanna pay up for their plates - please do yourself a favor and get one of their stampers.

Yay for Konad!

Check out all of the lovely Konad products available on Nail Polish Canada right here.
I'm drooling over the kit with all the polishes!

And while we are talking about NPC - did you see the amazing Nfu-Oh polishes they donated to my giveaway? So gorgeous!

Oh my gosh, I LOVE the pink mani! I am definitely going to try something similar!I totally agree about Konad being the best too. I bought my first plates & supplies from eBay & tried using regular polish and it just did NOT work for me. So I gave up and let my stamping things collect dust for almost a year! I recently bought the Konad polish and a Konad plate and I was SOOOO impressed! I think the generic plates do work (not as well as the Konad ones however) but the Konad polish definitely works the best.